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Sunday, May 27, 2012

We all have a secret kitchen shame, don't we? That food that we secretly love that we wouldn't want anyone else to know about, or that kitchen "bad habit" that we try to keep a secret. One passionate foodie I know, whose food and recipes I respect and trust, secretly loves mac 'n' cheese out of a box. Another loves those slices of processed cheese, and yet another loves cheezels.

I have many kitchen secrets, and don't think for one moment that I am completely going to 'fess up and tell all. I am not going to go into great detail about the frankfurters, or the thick slabs of white "Sunday" bread, slathered with butter, then golden syrup, and topped off with a chunk of cheese! Oh no, I'm not going to tell you about that.

But I will tell you this - I am my mother's daughter. For the first 18 years of my life, I watched my mother clear the table after dinner every night, put all the leftovers into little Tupperware containers and put them into the fridge. Even if those leftovers amounted to nothing more than half a potato, a couple of carrot rings, and a tablespoon of peas. This is not a criticism you understand, simply a statement of fact. And in that way that we learn what we see, I am completely incapable of throwing away a leftover - all manner of bits and pieces find there way into bowls and containers, and then on into the fridge. Now this is where things fall down a little. Somehow, while I was taking in every single detail of the stashing and stowing, I never figured out what ever actually happened to all those leftovers after their holiday in the fridge.

The upshot of all that is that all these leftovers find their way into my fridge, but they never find their way out again - the end result being that there are times when a glimpse into the depths of my refrigerator might fool you into thinking I am more scientist than cook - you get the picture? 'Nough said.

All of which is really apropos of nothing, except that in trying to come up with a post this week - something to make for my contribution to Cookbook Sundays and also to Sweet New Zealand - I thought I would first check the contents of the fridge for inspiration. Lo and behold - half a tin of condensed milk. Now I cannot tell you how long that had been there but, unlike all the other science experiments keeping it company, the condensed milk was still in perfect condition.

So with half a tin of condensed milk in hand, some kind of sweet "slicey" kind of thing seemed like the obvious choice. Dipping into that cookbook collection of mine, it being Cookbook Sunday time and all, I plucked out Annabel Langbein's More Taste Than Time, Fast Track Food for Busy People. This is a book that I have had in my collection for many years, and one I used to use regularly, but somehow over the years has been pushed aside for other more recent acquisitions. This was a great book to get familiar with again. Aimed at busy cooks, it is divided into chapters like Breakfast and Brunch, Great Grazing, Sexy Salads, One Pot Hot and more, and makes it really easy to enjoy great food with minimal effort and with a minimum amount of time.

I finally settled on Annabel's recipe for Apricot Coconut Slice as my inspiration, but swapped out apricots for a mixture of figs and crystallised ginger; subbed in some lime juice for lemon juice, since I had a couple of limes languishing in the fruit bowl, and because ginger and lime are such great partners; and replaced a thick layer of lemon icing, with a thin layer of dark chocolate, because ... well, just 'cos. And, anyway, what is not to love about figs and ginger with chocolate?! The bitter chocolate, and the tangy ginger and lime totally cut through the condensed milk, so this is not at all too sweet or rich. It may be a bit of a wallflower in the looks department, but it's the perfect little slice to enjoy with an afternoon coffee or as an after-dinner "finisher".

Do you have a secret kitchen shame? I'd love to know, and of course your secret's safe with me. Now here's the recipe.

Put biscuits into food processor and pulse until crushed into crumbs. Alternatively, put biscuits into a plastic bag and bash the bejeezus out of them until crushed - this is the more satisfying method.

Melt butter and condensed milk in a small pan, then cook for a minute or two, stirring constantly until the two have come together. Remove from heat.

In a large bowl, mix together the crushed biscuits, chopped figs and ginger, coconut and lime juice. Add the butter and condensed milk, and mix everything together well.

Meanwhile, break chocolate into squares and place in a bowl set of a pan of barely simmering water, making sure the water does not touch the bottom of the bowl. Stir the chocolate from time to time until melted. Remove from the heat and pour over the top of the slice base, spreading out to form an even coating. Return to the fridge until set.

I'm sharing this slice this week at Cookbook Sundays, where my friends are delving into their cookbook collections and sharing some of their recipes. Do stop by to see what they're cooking - you might even feel inspired to link up a recipe from one of your own cookbooks.

If you're anything like me
you have dozens of cookbooks gathering dust on your bookshelves, some of
which have never even been cooked from. Sure I spent hours browsing
through them when I first
bought them, marking all the recipes I was going to make with little
post-it notes, and yet still those books languish in the bookcase and
never make it to the kitchen. There are others from which I have made
but one recipe which was such a resounding success that I've made it
over and
over again, and yet somehow I've never made anything
else from that book. Sound a bit familiar?!

Take comfort - you are not alone, and now Cookbook Sundays is your
opportunity to change that. Every Sunday I'm going to share with you a
recipe that I haven't made before from one of my ever expanding
collection of cookbooks. And, because I know that if you have read this
far then you are guilty of this too, I'm inviting you to join in with
me. Each week my Cookbook Sundays post will have a linky for you to
share something you've cooked from one of your cookbooks.

The rules for joining in are simple:

Your post must state the author
and the title of the book your recipe has come from.

Your post must mention Cookbook Sundays and
link back to this post. Including the Cookbook Sundays badge is optional, but
always appreciated.

You may submit as many entries as you like, and you
may use the same cookbook as many times as you like. Old posts are also welcome.

Lastly, remember that
what goes around, comes around - one of the reasons you are
participating in this is because you want people to read your posts, so
do the right thing and go and visit a few of the other participants - you can even "Like" your favourites.

Now, go and dust off those cookbooks and get cooking! Use
the linky tool at the end of this post to submit your entry/entries - simply scroll down to where it says "You are next ...
Click here to enter", and then follow the instructions. The linky will be open for one week.

Lastly, if you would like to use the Cookbook Sundays badge
in your post, simply copy the code in the box beside the badge below
and paste it into your post. Feel free to also use it in your sidebar
if you wish.

Ok, so I've taken a few liberties with the lyrics of Irving Berlin's "Cheek to Cheek", and admittedly my lyrical lattitude might have Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire missing a step or two, but trust me when I tell you that you are going to want to trip the light fantastic straight to the kitchen and make this dish ... straight away ... today ... without further delay - are you getting the picture?

This is another dish from the Karen Martini book, "Where the Heart is", which I introduced you to last week, and so is my submission this week for Cookbook Sundays - I told you, you were going to be seeing a lot from this book.

This recipe, I think, really typifies so much from this book - it is a thoroughly easy dish to bring together and takes no more time to make than that involved in boiling pasta; it uses a great combination of ingredients - one which might not seem immediately obvious, but once you take that first mouthful makes you wonder why you've never tried it before; it is simple, comforting, family food, and yet would certainly not disappoint if served for company.

I adjusted quantities and ingredients a little to suit what I had on hand and number of mouths I had to feed, but like many such recipes quantities are not critical so feel free to adjust this to suit your own tastes. As far as pasta goes, I used strozzapreti (priest chokers), because I love the name and they also happen to be my favourite shape for all kinds of things, but feel free to use whatever takes your fancy - penne would be good, and farfalle would also be great.

Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Salt the water liberally, add the pasta to the water and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the broccoli to the water, and continue boiling until the pasta is cooked. Note: you want the broccoli to be well-cooked here - it should end up with a similar "bite" to the pasta - this is not the home for crispy, crunchy broccoli.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the prawns to the pan, season with the flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, and cook, stirring from time to time, until the prawns are beginning to turn pink (2-3 minutes). Add the chilli and garlic and cook for another couple of minutes. Add the parsley, cook for a further minute; then add the wine, lemon juice and zest. As it bubbles up, stir to deglaze the pan. Remove from the heat.

Once the pasta is cooked, reserve a cup of the pasta water, then remove from heat, and drain. Return prawn mixture to the heat, add the pasta to the prawns, and toss to coat everything well. Add the mascarpone, mix through thoroughly, and add some of the reserved pasta water if necessary. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Serve immediately, and enjoy the accolades.

I'm sharing this dish this week at Cookbook Sundays, where my friends are delving into their cookbook collections and sharing some of their recipes. Do keep reading to see what they're cooking - you might even feel inspired to link up a recipe from one of your own cookbooks.

If you're anything like me
you have dozens of cookbooks gathering dust on your bookshelves, some of
which have never even been cooked from. Sure I spent hours browsing
through them when I first
bought them, marking all the recipes I was going to make with little
post-it notes, and yet still those books languish in the bookcase and
never make it to the kitchen. There are others from which I have made
but one recipe which was such a resounding success that I've made it
over and
over again, and yet somehow I've never made anything
else from that book. Sound a bit familiar?!

Take comfort - you are not alone, and now Cookbook Sundays is your
opportunity to change that. Every Sunday I'm going to share with you a
recipe that I haven't made before from one of my ever expanding
collection of cookbooks. And, because I know that if you have read this
far then you are guilty of this too, I'm inviting you to join in with
me. Each week my Cookbook Sundays post will have a linky for you to
share something you've cooked from one of your cookbooks.

The rules for joining in are simple:

Your post must state the author
and the title of the book your recipe has come from.

Your post must mention Cookbook Sundays and
link back to this post. Including the Cookbook Sundays badge is optional, but
always appreciated.

You may submit as many entries as you like, and you
may use the same cookbook as many times as you like. Old posts are also welcome.

Lastly, remember that
what goes around, comes around - one of the reasons you are
participating in this is because you want people to read your posts, so
do the right thing and go and visit a few of the other participants - you can even "Like" your favourites.

Now, go and dust off those cookbooks and get cooking! Use
the linky tool at the end of this post to submit your entry/entries - simply scroll down to where it says "You are next ...
Click here to enter", and then follow the instructions. The linky will be open for one week.

Lastly, if you would like to use the Cookbook Sundays badge
in your post, simply copy the code in the box beside the badge below
and paste it into your post. Feel free to also use it in your sidebar
if you wish.

Saturday, May 12, 2012

My neighbour has a good sized fig tree which fruits quite prolifically - lucky neighbour! My neighbour doesn't eat figs and, although the birds do, if I'm really vigilant I can get a fair share of them before my feathered friends swoop on them - lucky me!

As luck would also have it, I recently picked up a copy of Karen Martini's book "Where the Heart is" for an absolute song on TradeMe (the New Zealand equivalent of eBay).

I had been wanting this book for ages, and when it finally arrived and I prised the package open, the first page it fell open at was this recipe for Baked Figs with Walnut Cream and Tarragon. With all those figs ripening on the tree I knew that Karen and I were going to get along famously.

Karen Martini describes herself as an "intuitive cook" and, in the introduction to the book, talks of the challenge of bringing together her recipes of the last 20 years as one which made her reflect on her past. She says ... "My recipes were sometimes typed, often handwritten and frequently scrawled on endless sheets of paper, on the back of old menus, gas bills, invoices and business cards. They reflect times shared with family and friends, at home and on holiday, barbecues, raucous parties, romantic moments and solitary dinners. They articulated my obsession with particular ingredients - artichokes, fennel, the unloved pea. They traced my journeys to the source of special ingredients, recorded triumphs over unavailability and celebrated the seasons. Most of all, they seemed to chart my life."

The book is packed full of recipes which are just made for sharing with family and friends. Recipes are uncomplicated and inspirational, rather than relying on a lot of "cheffie" techniques that need to be slavishly followed. Most of all these are recipes which make the most of fresh, seasonal produce, and I know that I will be doing a lot of cooking from this book.

I made a few adjustments to the recipe. Firstly, the original recipe called for the inclusion of fresh tarragon in the salad. I couldn't find any fresh tarragon, so I used a little dried tarragon in the "stuffing" for the figs instead. Now, there are not many things in which I use dried herbs, but in this case the slight "earthiness" of the dried tarragon worked well with the walnuts and the figs. Use judiciously though - tarragon has a strong flavour and too much can be a ghastly thing. I suggest adding a pinch, taste, add a pinch more, taste again, etc, until you get the flavour right. I also added some grated lemon zest to the mascarpone filling - the lemon cuts through the creaminess and also balances out the sweetness of the figs. Make sure that you use the best extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar that you can afford here.

This recipe would be a perfect appetiser for two people, or for one greedy person like me makes a fabulous light lunch.

Put the mascarpone into a small bowl. Add 1 dessertspoon of cold water and whisk till loosened and smooth. Put 1/2 cup of the walnuts into a mortar and pestle and pound until finely crushed - alternatively you could do this in a food processor. Add to the mascarpone, along with the grated lemon zest, flaky sea salt, ground black pepper and pinch of dried tarragon. Mix well and taste. Adjust lemon, seasoning and tarragon to taste.

Cut figs into quarters, almost to the base - enough to "open up" the figs like petals, but making sure that they stay intact.

Squeeze a little of the lemon juice over each of the figs, and then "stuff" each of the figs with a dollop of the mascarpone mixture.

Place the figs in a small ovenproof dish and bake for 8-10 minutes, until the figs are soft and the filling is starting to get "oozey" and melty.

Pile the rocket leaves in a serving bowl and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and the rest of the lemon juice. Nestle the figs amongst the rocket leaves, spooning any of the mascarpone mixture that might have oozed out of the figs back over them.

Sprinkle the remaining walnuts over the top, and drizzle with a little balsamic vinegar.

I'm sharing these figs this week at Cookbook Sundays, where my friends are delving into their cookbook collections and sharing some of their recipes. Do keep reading to see what they're cooking - you might even feel inspired to link up a recipe from one of your own cookbooks.

If you're anything like me
you have dozens of cookbooks gathering dust on your bookshelves, some of
which have never even been cooked from. Sure I spent hours browsing
through them when I first
bought them, marking all the recipes I was going to make with little
post-it notes, and yet still those books languish in the bookcase and
never make it to the kitchen. There are others from which I have made
but one recipe which was such a resounding success that I've made it
over and
over again, and yet somehow I've never made anything
else from that book. Sound a bit familiar?!

Take comfort - you are not alone, and now Cookbook Sundays is your
opportunity to change that. Every Sunday I'm going to share with you a
recipe that I haven't made before from one of my ever expanding
collection of cookbooks. And, because I know that if you have read this
far then you are guilty of this too, I'm inviting you to join in with
me. Each week my Cookbook Sundays post will have a linky for you to
share something you've cooked from one of your cookbooks.

The rules for joining in are simple:

Your post must state the author
and the title of the book your recipe has come from.

Your post must mention Cookbook Sundays and
link back to this post. Including the Cookbook Sundays badge is optional, but
always appreciated.

You may submit as many entries as you like, and you
may use the same cookbook as many times as you like. Old posts are also welcome.

Lastly, remember that
what goes around, comes around - one of the reasons you are
participating in this is because you want people to read your posts, so
do the right thing and go and visit a few of the other participants - you can even "Like" your favourites.

Now, go and dust off those cookbooks and get cooking! Use
the linky tool at the end of this post to submit your entry/entries - simply scroll down to where it says "You are next ...
Click here to enter", and then follow the instructions. The linky will be open for one week.

Lastly, if you would like to use the Cookbook Sundays badge
in your post, simply copy the code in the box beside the badge below
and paste it into your post. Feel free to also use it in your sidebar
if you wish.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

I've got to confess that I've been feeling a little despondent about blogging lately. Not that I've been short on inspiration for things to cook, but now that we're in the very depths of autumn (in fact, getting perilously close to winter, even) I'm often finding these days that, by the time I get a dish finished and onto the plate, night has fallen. Those of you who are also bloggers know that this means just one thing - the dreaded "orange" photos. And so it is that several dishes I've made for you over the last couple of weeks have been rendered completely unblogworthy by the lack of a decent photograph.

One thing I'm not despondent about, however, is this Broccoli, Leek & Blue Cheese Pie - it's so good, in fact, that I've made it twice in the last week. This is something of a rarity for me, but I can tell you that it won't end there - I will definitely be making this one again and again.

This pie is both easy and economical to make, tastes great both hot and cold, and reheats well should you be lucky enough to have leftovers. In actual fact the leek filling tastes so good that I ate half of it before it even made it into the pie, and I imagine it could be used as a great accompaniment to some grilled or roasted chicken.

Yes I know I have already shared several recipes with you from this book, and it would have been good to introduce you to another one of my books, but a couple of things I had planned for you fell foul to the previously mentioned unblogworthy photographs - obviously I will just have to have another go at some of those things. In the meantime, hope you'll have a go at this pie, and try to imagine that it tastes a whole lot better than these photos might suggest.

Roll out two-thirds of the pastry into a circle that is large enough to line the base of the tart dish. Prick the pastry base all over with a fork, then line with parchment paper and fill with baking beans. Bake blind for about 15 minutes, then remove the paper and baking beans and bake for a further 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, prepare the filling. Bring a medium sized pan of water to the boil, add the broccoli and allow to cook for about two minutes, until just tender. Drain, refresh immediately in cold water, then drain again and leave to dry.

Melt the butter in a saute pan over gentle heat, add the leaks and saute until soft, but not browned - about 10 minutes. Add the cream, tarragon, mustard, salt and pepper. Stir to combine everything and remove from the heat. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary.

Spread the leek mixture over the base of the pastry case, and strew the broccoli over the top, nestling the florets into the leek mixture. Crumble over the blue cheese.

Brush the rim of the pastry case with the beaten egg. Roll out the remaining pastry for a lid and place over the filling, pressing firmly around the edges to attach the lid to the base. Tuck in or trim off any excess.

Brush the lid with the beaten egg, prick in a few places with a fork to allow steam to escape, and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Remove from oven and allow to stand for a few minutes before serving.

I'm sharing this pie this week at Cookbook Sundays, where my friends are delving into their cookbook collections and sharing some of their recipes. Do stop by to see what they're cooking - you might even feel inspired to link up a recipe from one of your own cookbooks.

If you're anything like me
you have dozens of cookbooks gathering dust on your bookshelves, some of
which have never even been cooked from. Sure I spent hours browsing
through them when I first
bought them, marking all the recipes I was going to make with little
post-it notes, and yet still those books languish in the bookcase and
never make it to the kitchen. There are others from which I have made
but one recipe which was such a resounding success that I've made it
over and
over again, and yet somehow I've never made anything
else from that book. Sound a bit familiar?!

Take comfort - you are not alone, and now Cookbook Sundays is your
opportunity to change that. Every Sunday I'm going to share with you a
recipe that I haven't made before from one of my ever expanding
collection of cookbooks. And, because I know that if you have read this
far then you are guilty of this too, I'm inviting you to join in with
me. Each week my Cookbook Sundays post will have a linky for you to
share something you've cooked from one of your cookbooks.

The rules for joining in are simple:

Your post must state the author
and the title of the book your recipe has come from.

Your post must mention Cookbook Sundays and
link back to this post. Including the Cookbook Sundays badge is optional, but
always appreciated.

You may submit as many entries as you like, and you
may use the same cookbook as many times as you like. Old posts are also welcome.

Lastly, remember that
what goes around, comes around - one of the reasons you are
participating in this is because you want people to read your posts, so
do the right thing and go and visit a few of the other participants - you can even "Like" your favourites.

Now, go and dust off those cookbooks and get cooking! Use
the linky tool at the end of this post to submit your entry/entries - simply scroll down to where it says "You are next ...
Click here to enter", and then follow the instructions. The linky will be open for one week.

Lastly, if you would like to use the Cookbook Sundays badge
in your post, simply copy the code in the box beside the badge below
and paste it into your post. Feel free to also use it in your sidebar
if you wish.

About Me

My name is Sue. I am a passionate food lover and enthusiastic cook. I also teach yoga and maintain a daily yoga practice ... a practice which has led to a growing awareness of the need to live and eat more mindfully and consciously. I am by no means a strict vegetarian, but I do consume a "mainly vegetarian" diet and I make an effort to exercise ethically responsible food choices as much as possible. I therefore whenever possible seek out products which are free range, organic, seasonal and locally produced. I try to make most things from scratch, and to keep meals as uncomplicated as possible. Because I often teach classes in the evenings, it's important to me to be able to prepare a delicious meal quickly, from a few simple, good quality ingredients.